A Long Journey to Home

10 April, 2010. It was a very long and tiring day. My parents and I were either in the air or on the road.

We woke up at 5 o'clock in the morning at our Sunset Beach apartment in Benalmadena, Spain. Finally, our vacation in Spain had come to an end. Showered. Dressed. Did last minute packing. We took a cab to Malaga International Airport, which, I found our that day, is actually named after Pablo Cruz Picasso, a famous painter... my ignorance!

We were leaving Spain for Staffordshire, specifically Newcastle under Lyme, my home... for now. The journey from Spain to Newcastle under Lyme felt like forever. We got into an EasyJet plane to London Gatwick and then to a coach to London Victoria, another to Birmingham... It was almost midnight when we reached Stoke-on-Trent. We were thrilled to see a prebooked taxi was waiting to take us to my 'Playmate Crib' - that how I call my apartment in Newcastle under Lyme, about ten to fifteen minutes away from where we were. My parents just wanted to end the day with a long goodnight sleep, while I just wanted to get back to my Internet and Korean-crazed life.

Don't get me wrong. It was good to get away from the routine. I did enjoy the one week with my parents in Costa del Sol, although I regretted not being able to play at its extremely beautiful beach. Apart from bonding with my parents who I had not seen for months, I realise that Spain is indeed a good holiday destination. Something I have never thought of. In fact, Spain is nothing like I imagined it would be. It's cleaner, more peaceful and more picturesque. Walking along the street around Picasso's home and museum in Malaga especially made me feel like one of the characters from Zorro. The street was beautifully laid out with some people making a living out of singing or playing instruments to Spanish songs. So dreamy and romantic. I wonder why Paris is the capital of romance, when that place seems so much better. I guess everyone is entitled on their perception of romance.

In short, I truly recommend people to visit Spain. While you do so, don't miss the chance to play at its beaches as well as to watch Flamenco dance and bull fight. Unfortunately, no bull fight was on during my period of stay in Spain. Lastly, you also need to know basic Spanish when visiting Spain. Like what our first taxi driver in Spain said to us, "No Ingles. Zero!" Despite spending a semester studying the language, I was useless throughout the vacation. I kept mixing Spanish with French. I guess studying a language for five years in my teens is different from studying a language for half a year in my twenties. An old friendly woman seated next to me in a bus in Spain once told me to practise Spanish. I wish it is that simple, but it is not when you have no one to practise it with and when you have a lack interest in it. Honestly, the only reasons I studies Spanish were I knew language examination was easier to score and Spanish classes were the only ones that matched my weekly timetable at that time. Now, I wish I have more motivation than those.

Someday, I am going to visit Spain again, maybe other areas than Costa del Sol. At that time, I will make sure my basic Spanish is more polished... and I get to play at one of its beaches and watch one of its bull fights.